, a similar company to LinkedIn, is expanding like crazy. Its growth rate is much higher than LinkedIn’s was in its initial stages. BranchOut’s early success is in large part due to its use of Facebook’s platform. Facebook users can add BranchOut’s app to their account and then use the app to contact Facebook members that are employed by companies of interest.

While LinkedIn is positioned as a more professional network, BranchOut targets a wider range of audiences, especially recent college graduates. While the two companies are competitors, for users, they are very complementary. Initially, you might use BranchOut to connect with various contacts. After networking with various contacts, you might want to share your résumé. For this, you would want to use LinkedIn.

Source: “LinkedIn: BranchOut Enhances LinkedIn’s Prospects”

Do you need help with grocery shopping, cleaning the house, or transportation? Then contact a TaskRabbit. What’s a TaskRabbit? A TaskRabbit is a background-checked individual willing to help you out with random tasks for compensation. TaskRabbits are affiliated with TaskRabbit.

Watch this introductory video to see just how TaskRabbit works –

Foursquare has grown exponentially over the last year to become a huge social network. Why not use it to market your business? Here are a few steps in creating a successful marketing presence on Foursquare –

1. Claim your business – Foursquare will verify your ownership through various instructions depending on how many chain locations you have. Once you have verified your business, you will be able to use foursquare’s built-in analytics along with other neat features.

1. Create special offers – When your business is verified, you can create for your customers various discounts and special offers. Customers can receive your discounts and specials when they check into your business. For example, someone that checks in for the first time might receive the newbie special, which could be a free drink or something.

Using Foursquare to market your business is a great way to become active with your customers. Not only does it help build customer loyalty, it can help your business identify various target markets.

Source: “Five Tips for Successful Foursquare Marketing”

There are many cool iPhone apps out there, but one I find really interesting is Roamler. How it works – Roamler pays Roamlers (Roamler users) to perform work related tasks for the businesses partnering with it. Basically, Roamlers are a mobile workforce. There is one catch: Roamler is currently only available in Amsterdam and parts of the United Kingdom. Regardless, the idea is still really fascinating. There is a company based in California called Gigwalk that is very similar. Check out the video to see what Roamler is all about –

Donny Ouyang is not the only young entrepreneur making large amounts of money through opportunities on the Internet. Josh Buckley is a 19-year-old that achieved financial independence by designing and selling websites.

Buckley sold his first website for around $200 at the age of 15. Since then, he has created and sold a number of websites. Menewsha.com was Buckley’s most well-known project to date. Basically, Menewsha allows members to create and customize avatars to their liking. In an interview, Buckley said he has always been interested in virtual communities. It’s this interest and knowledge of how important social networking is that has allowed him to create websites people enjoy and keep coming back to. Social networking is a factor so many websites are taking advantage of today, and rightly so.

In the same interview, Buckley said perseverance was the single factor that helped him become successful. It’s what drove him to success. We saw that same perseverance in Mark Zuckerberg in The Social Network during class today. Perseverance is a quality entrepreneurs need. Perseverance drives people to push past the tough times – criticism, tedious hours of work, etc.

Josh Buckley has reached success at such a young age, and he did it through persevering through tedious hours of work. He knew what he wanted and didn’t allow himself to become distracted or discouraged. Perseverance is a must for entrepreneurs.

Ever wonder how a so-called “social network” website is making so much money?

I mean think about it… There’s no charge to join, no subscription fee, no new hardware or software to buy… How on earth are they pulling in millions and millions of dollars??

It’s simple really. ADVERTISING.

Facebook charges companies to place ads on the site. Ya know, those annoying things that are the side panel of every page, yeah those. Facebook has created a quick and easy way for companies to target their ads. By collecting all kinds of data about its users (through profile information, places they visit, likes, etc.) Facebook can place ads in just the right place at just the right time. Because of this pinpoint accuracy, advertisers flock to them for ad space!

That’s how they make money. They charge for ad space, and thousands of companies are willing to pay large sums for it.

So don’t overlook the potential of selling ads on your site!